The Psychology of Performance: How to Be Your Best in Life

Course Overview

Tackle life’s challenges and carry those dreams to the goal line with science-based performance psychology strategies. This comprehensive course reveals:

✔ How to achieve peak performance states (“the zone”) ✔ Mental techniques used by elite athletes and performers ✔ Strategies to overcome anxiety, burnout and perfectionism ✔ Science-backed methods for motivation and focus

Key areas covered:

• Deliberate practice techniques
• Mindfulness for performance
• Confidence building
• Team dynamics
• Healthy approaches to competition

Video Lectures

01: Sport and Performance Psychology

Duration: 32 min
Introduction to this emerging field and the cognitive/physical practices that lead to optimal performance.

02: Deliberate Practice: Essential for Experts

Duration: 30 min
Why talent is overrated and how structured, goal-oriented practice creates true expertise.

03: How Values and Goals Drive Performance

Duration: 27 min
Define your core motivations to sustain effort through challenges and setbacks.

04: The Benefits of Mindfulness in Performance

Duration: 33 min
Three models of mindfulness and their application to athletic/artistic performance.

05: When Positive Thinking Doesn’t Work

Duration: 29 min
Cognitive defusion techniques to manage unhelpful thoughts during performance.

06: Acceptance and the Willingness to Feel

Duration: 34 min
Embracing the full range of emotions (not just positivity) for authentic performance.

07: Commitment Means “No Matter What”

Duration: 30 min
Aligning commitment with long-term values rather than short-term outcomes.

08: Finding Internal Motivation

Duration: 28 min
The three inherent human needs that drive lasting motivation.

09: Using Imagery to Prepare for Action

Duration: 30 min
How mental rehearsal physically prepares the body for performance.

10: Confidence and Self-Talk

Duration: 30 min
Building self-efficacy through strategic self-talk techniques.

11: Developing Focused Attention

Duration: 29 min
Five principles of effective concentration and avoiding hyper-accessibility.

12: Superstitions, Rituals and Routines

Duration: 29 min
Differentiating helpful routines from superstitious thinking.

13: Peak Performance: Getting in the Zone

Duration: 33 min
Creating optimal conditions to enter flow states consistently.

14: Performance Anxiety and Choking

Duration: 33 min
Quiet Eye training and other techniques to manage competition pressure.

15: Being the Perfect Perfectionist

Duration: 32 min
Harnessing perfectionism’s benefits while avoiding its pitfalls.

16: Self-Compassion for Self-Improvement

Duration: 31 min
Why acknowledging feelings improves performance outcomes.

17: Burnout and the Need for Recovery

Duration: 32 min
Recognizing and preventing burnout in athletes and performers.

18: Pain Tolerance and Injury Rehabilitation

Duration: 30 min
The bio-psycho-social context of pain management in sports.

19: The Dangerous Pursuit of the Ideal Body

Duration: 32 min
Risks of disordered eating and performance-enhancing substances.

20: Fan Psychology, Identification and Violence

Duration: 30 min
How team identification affects fan emotions and behavior.

21: Four Qualities of a Successful Team

Duration: 31 min
Cohesion, cooperation, roles and leadership in team dynamics.

22: Talent: A Developmental Process

Duration: 30 min
Optimal models for nurturing young athletes’ growth.

23: How to Be a Great Sport Parent

Duration: 30 min
Avoiding common mistakes that undermine young performers.

24: Aging Athletes: Competing and Retiring

Duration: 33 min
Maintaining performance and transitioning out of competition.